A Cause worth killing for
A/N: As always, thanks for the kind reviews, they are always welcome.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own The Legend of Zelda. It is the copyright of Nintendo.
Chapter 13: Justice waits for no man
By the time Link came around, it was morning. Apparently it had snowed the whole rest of the night, and his body had been covered in a thin layer of white. Link was not happy this morning: He felt a stinging pain in the back of his head and bitter anger and resentment poured like ash from his mouth. When he looked up and realized that the alley was now empty, he angrily punched the ground with his fist. Marth had gotten away. Link got up on his feet in short order, thinking of a way to find out where the Prince could've gone when he saw something sticking out of the deeper shadows in the alley: It was a small leg.
Link felt stinging pain erupt within him when he pulled the boy out into the light. The boy was already dead, lying in a fetal position. Link saw a deep wound in the boy's throat through the tattered clothes: He had been stabbed to death. Link couldn't remember the last time he had felt such a shockwave of vendetta rush through his system, begging for release.
"Fire, Consume!" Link muttered and the boy's lifeless body was set ablaze, quickly turning to ashes. Link watched as a light wind picked up the ash and carried it into the skies. His eyes narrowed as he faced the rising sun.
"There will be revenge", Link muttered and shot a glance towards Hyrule Castle, "Tonight... at the ball... The inborn rat will pay for what he has done." A plan had begun formulating in Link's head, something that would make Marth show regret in his final moments. He turned to the back-door of the Tavern, from which he had come out last night, right before he had been knocked out cold. He readied his blades: "And here, the first step begins".
Marth woke up in his bed, slightly relieved. He had spent last night in town on some rather exotic pleasantries that he did not desire anyone in the Castle to know about. However, according to his guards, there had been no witnesses. Only one had entered the alley and he was swiftly knocked out: His secret was still safe. He looked outside the windows to find that the snow was still falling peacefully, as if nature itself wished to guise his secrets. He smiled at his own cleverness and rejoiced in the new day: Today was, after all, the day of the great ball, where his allegiance to Hyrule would become firmly cemented. All was in order.
If Marth was happy and content that morning, then Zelda was the opposite. She had awoken with the same, saddening sting in her heart that she would soon be promised to another man. Then it would be impossible to even dream of her beloved hero. Now she simply sat there, in a state close enough to apathy, as the handmaidens prepared her ferociously for this, as they all put it: "Amazing and romantic day".
"On this 'amazing and romantic day' I shall lose all of my remaining freedom", Zelda protested firmly when she had had enough of their constant talking.
"Oh, you're just nervous", one of the handmaidens replied as she carefully tied Zelda's hair into a bun at the back of her head, "Prince Marth is so dreamy, after all." This remark sent a wave of giggles through the other handmaidens and Zelda had to restrain herself to not roll her eyes.
"He just seems so... boyish to me. Or womanly, more appropriately ", Zelda added in her mind, however "boyish" had seemed more diplomatic. The thought of spending her entire evening with the prince sent shivers of dread down Zelda's spine.
After what felt like an agonizing eternity, Zelda's maidens concluded that they were finished. The queen rose from her seat and went over to the large mirror. She didn't like to admit it but she did look absolutely stunning.
"Shame that I have to be this beautiful for Marth's sake", She thought as her maidens left the room. She decided to have some alone time in the garden before lunch. She swept her thick winter cloak around her shoulders and set out to the palace gardens.
Small flakes of snow slowly fell to the ground. The trees that would blossom in the spring and summer were now barren and covered in white powder. It was very quiet, in a serene way. Zelda looked up at the grey sky and relished in the scarce solitude. In this very same courtyard, years ago, she had spent her first day with her hero. He had been so gentle, so firm, yet he was so shy, so innocent.
"I swear, Zelda, I'll always be here to protect you." She remembered the words he had spoken to her clearly as Lake Hylia's waters during the summer. She cried a little when she thought about it. Then the pain drained her of strength and she had to sit down on a bench beneath a tree. There, under the dead tree, Zelda cried herself to sleep, allowing herself to slip into dreaming to escape the pain of remembrance.
Zelda knew that she was dreaming. She was in the courtyard, but for some reason Lake Hylia was there as well, making an abrupt end to her courtyard. It was shrouded in a fog: A fog that always seemed to linger right at the end of Zelda's vision. It was summer in her dream, and birds were making noise in the treetops. She sat down in the grass, feeling strangely content, when she heard a voice:
"Mind if I keep you company, my queen?" Zelda froze in shock. That voice was one that she had longed to hear for quite some time, that now when she did she wouldn't believe it. She got up on her feet and turned around to face him: Her hero, her most precious one: Link. He was standing there, in the fog, slowly approaching her. As he drew ever closer she saw his wounds; He had deep cuts all over his body.
"Link...", she started, but he just smiled.
"Zelda", Link said in a voice calmer than a stilled ocean, "This... is how you remember me. From that day when you saw me chase down Ganondorf... This is it." He didn't seem at all troubled by his wounds but walked casually, drawing closer to Zelda. "Every wound I ever took, I took for you", he said, "And I would have taken so many more for the same reason. Have you missed me, my love?" When his smile widened even further, Zelda could not bear it anymore. She had never been able to resist that face, even less so in her dreams. She ran the last distance and embraced Link tightly. He felt so real that she forgot it was just a dream. He hugged her back and held her as she buried her face in his partially blood-soaked tunic and cried.
"Hush, my love", Link comforted, "Know that I regret all the pain I have caused you during these last years." Zelda looked up at him in disbelief.
"You're dead", her voice trembled, "How could you have done differently? You gave your life to protect everyone!" Link chuckled at her words.
"I spilled much blood to keep Hyrule safe, including my own. I can see that your memories pain you, but remember that this is nothing but a dream... This will go away once you wake up."
"But I don't want it to go away! I want to stay here with you!" Zelda understood just how childish that must have sounded and Link shook his head, still smiling just as widely.
"You will be betrothed to Marth this evening...", his smile was gone and he was now staring intently into Zelda's eyes, "You don't want to, and I wouldn't want you to. There is nothing to be done about it, so you will have to try and live with it... Somehow. Do you understand what I am saying?" Zelda tried to avert her gaze but she couldn't help but nod, amid the sobs. Link lifted her chin up.
"Good", was his only response. Zelda couldn't constrain herself anymore and kissed him, passionately, on the lips. Link eagerly returned the kiss, and they let their tongues play in each other's mouths. Then, out of nowhere, Zelda woke up. Link was gone, as was the lake, as was the sun. The snow and the barren courtyard was all that was left of her dream.
She sat there for a while and let the dream take its place among her more cherished memories. Maybe that would be the last time she ever saw her beloved, even in a dream.
The ball was quite a spectacle, one that attracted the attention of nobles from every region of the land, and even from lands beyond the Hylian borders. Aside from the guests from Termina there were dignities from Kakariko, Death Mountain, Zora's Domain, Gerudo Desert, Cathay, Frostpeak and many more. Aside from socializing, drinking, eating and dancing the most prominent feature of the ball would be gossip. At this point most of the gossip concerned the rumors of a marriage between the queen of Hyrule and the Prince of Termina. The irony being that the Queen in question was the least enthusiastic about the whole affair. Not that anyone could tell, her royal facade was as staggering as ever. She had greeted all the guests as they passed into the banquet hall in the Castle where the feast would now commence.
The hall was heavily decorated. Banners bearing the symbols of each of the kingdoms present had been placed along the walls and chandeliers hung heavily from the ceiling. The colored glass in the big windows bathed the large hall in a cascade of light, truly setting the mood for a fantastic evening.
Zelda was, naturally, seated at the high end of the large, wooden table along with those of her guests that were royal. This, unfortunately for Zelda, meant that she spent the dinner next to Marth. Marth, as everyone close to him soon realized, was rather fond of speaking when he had tasted the wine. When he had tasted wine, another result was that his voice turned rather high-pitched and he also spoke of whatever happened to enter his mind.
"And then... hic... I ordered my guards to lob hish head off his shoulders!" Marth seemed to be rather impressed by his story, though no one else showed signs of amusement, in fact most ignored him and spoke to others around the table.
A new topic of debate had gained popularity among the guests: Vindictus. A Hylian noble had heard the rumors when he visited a tavern once and after a few mugs of ale by the table he had started spreading the rumors to those who sat next to him. These, in turn, spread the rumors, slightly more exaggerated, like a wildfire along the table. Zelda heard the rumors:
"They say he is a demon who feasts on human flesh."
"I heard he wishes to purge the land from humans."
"His eyes are as black as night."
"He sacrifices children to pagan gods."
"He was raised among sewer-rats."
Zelda found all these rumors difficult to believe, though she admitted that she had no idea about the Vindicator's past herself. All the rumors could be true, or none could be true. She didn't engage herself in the speculations about the murderer. For some reason she felt that the subject would be best left untouched. But soon, no matter what she felt, no one would remain untouched by Vindictus.
Later that evening, the ball commenced. The tables were swiftly removed by running servants and the chairs were placed along the walls of the room to give up the floor for the dancing couples. Zelda took the first dance, a slow waltz, with Marth. She constantly smelled the stench of his variety of perfumes but, luckily at this point, the Prince seemed as unenthused by their situation as she was. She guessed that his personal longing for him had been an act after all, and she was strangely relieved and insulted at the same time.
That first dance was stiff and boring and afterwards Zelda and Marth just nodded to each other and then they split up and disappeared into the crowd. None of them felt like being close to one another more than was absolutely necessary. While Marth mingled with the guests, mostly looking for someone to listen to his own ranting, Zelda sat on her chair by the end of the hall. It was an elevated position, a place where she could see the entire hall. Vindictus still seemed to be a popular subject of debate. Everyone spoke of him so leisurely when in fact he may well have it in his power to kill each and every one of them. Sheik said that she was safe: That she would not be one of his targets. That thought was actually comforting. It was strange, as if she had some deranged bodyguard that she had no idea where he ever was or when he would turn around. Whether she liked it or not, however, he would soon turn around.
Link did not smile. He was not happy. He had Marth's death carefully planned in his head, yet the thought of it gave no satisfaction. The boy who had died for Marth's despicable lusts would not get life or dignity back from Marth's own agony. Yet it couldn't be helped. The Prince had committed his crimes and he would pay the price. Link patted the trunk he carried with him. Within it was the stuff that would make Link's vengeance complete. He wore the same old clothes as ever, with the addition of a large, black hat to cover his hair and his eyes. If he could only get inside the large hall he would be able to move around unnoticed.
He was pacing outside the Castle now. Finding the ball room was not difficult. It was the only lit room in the Castle at this hour and the noise from the guests could be heard quite a distance. Link carefully climbed the walls of the Castle, taking extra note to avoid the guards. He heard them talking when he hurried across the walls and past the towers of the Castle.
"So I guess the queen's marrying then?"
"Aye, the Prince that came here yesterday."
"That has got to be the luckiest bastard you'll ever set eyes on, if you get my meaning."
The guards laughed but Link did nothing but smile dismissingly. The wedding-plans would be cancelled. In fact, most of Marth's plans for the future would be cancelled soon enough.
Link climbed the final wall and jumped through a window. He was now in a dark corridor but the ball was not far away. A rear door at the far end of the corridor led him straight into the festivities. After being out in the night, the lights from the ball room struck his eyes blind for a brief moment. Everywhere there were people dancing, talking, drinking and generally enjoying their time. Had his emotions not been a block of ice he might have felt slightly bad for ruining their evening. He paced around the room, constantly keeping his eyes out for Marth somewhere in the ocean of people in colorful robes and dresses. He saw the queen in the corner of his eye and had to fight a sudden urge to go to her. He didn't know why but he definitely wanted to go to her. He waved away the thought and kept a lookout for Marth.
He heard the crowd talk and converse lively. To his surprise he found that most conversations revolved around him, Vindictus.
"They say he's a veteran from the civil war who's gone insane", said one man to his friends.
"Really? Well, where is he from?" Asked another man.
"From what I could gather he's from the rural parts of the city. Maybe the Erodo District?"
Link kept moving and he felt vivid amusement when he saw the frequent return of some rumors, and every time he heard they became considered less rumor and more truth. Link had no idea that he had been born to a Blacksmith in the Edoro district, lost his mother, been bitten by rabid dogs in his youth, joined the military at a young age and was now driven by a hazed desire to exterminate mankind.
"Though, come to think of it, I have even as little clue to my history as these people." He mused to himself. He got so lost in thought that he didn't notice when he bumped into the person he was looking for: Marth.
"Shit", Link thought. Marth looked at him curiously.
"Say, I do not believe we have met. But since the guards must have let you in you must have some royal bearing, in spite of your dirty clothes. Who are you, stranger?" Link had to think of a lie, quickly.
"I am Kurt", he said, "And you are Prince Marth of Termina, correct?"
"That is most certainly me!" Link nodded, trying his hardest to look as relieved as possible.
"Sire, I'm afraid I must speak to you about a matter of utmost importance." Marth seemed confused at this. Obviously he wouldn't just walk along.
"Umm... It's about", Link leaned into his ear to whisper, "It's in regards to your... big secret, sire." Link felt a jolt of satisfaction as the Prince's eyes grew wide. Marth seemed genuinely stressed now.
"M-m-my secret?" He had turned a little pale now.
"Yes, my liege, please follow me." Link led Marth to a nearby window. Marth turned to Link.
"Now, about my... 'secret'." Link nodded and brought fourth his trunk.
"In here, my liege." Marth looked down into the trunk. Link revealed its content: The bartender from the Tavern that Marth had visited last night. Or, more accurately, the bartender's severed head staring at the shocked Prince with an empty gaze. Link lifted his hat slightly, allowing his black stare to meet the Prince's.
"In here", he said coldly, "is the man that you sentenced to death". Marth realized now: The black eyes, the harsh voice, the strangely handsome features. Vindictus had found him. He turned around and tried to run but Link caught him in a stranglehold.
"No!" Marth cried, catching the attention of the entire room. The party froze instantly and horrified gasps could be heard. Everywhere people whispered.
"Vindictus!"
"How did he get in here?"
"Is this the end for us all?"
Link frowned. He had hoped to do this silently, but maybe it was better this way. He pulled his katana, still constraining Marth with his right hand, and pointed the blade to Marth's back.
"Well now, Prince", Link said loud and clear, "I did mention something about your 'secret', did I not?" Link felt the Prince tremble under his touch. The crowd was now confused.
"Please, Vindictus. Don't..." Marth quietly pleaded to him. Link's eyes narrowed and he hardened his grip around the Prince, forcing anguished groans to come from his throat.
"'Please don't', you say? Is that what the boy said to you last night?"
"Vindictus, I..." Marth tried.
"No, actually, let's hear it from your own lips, loud and clear. Prince Marth Lowell of Termina, you are aware that I am to take your life and you know why. Please, do enlighten our company that has gathered here tonight why I have chosen to end your miserable existence."
"Because you are a deranged madman!" Marth tried to remain strong.
"Tell them and I will make your end swifter!" Link cried. He slowly pressed his sword into Marth's skin. Slowly and mercilessly. Marth couldn't bear the pain for long.
"Alright, I confess!"
"Well, there we go, now we're getting somewhere. Now tell the people about your little... perversions." Link felt sick just talking about it.
"I... have... a romantic attraction... to boys". The crowd let out a gasp of astonishment.
"Come on, Marth", Link said, "don't be modest. Your perversion runs deeper than that." Marth swallowed hard.
"I... Have... touched... little boys."
"I bet you liked it too. But how about the main act? How did it feel... to rape them?" Everyone in the room now had their mouths wide open and Link saw someone puking in the corner. Truth to be told, he wouldn't mind doing the same. He turned to the queen, who seemed just as shocked as everyone else. he gave her a wry smile.
"Don't be too sorry for your prospect husband's passing, my queen. He wouldn't have given you anything anyway. But your Pages, just maybe..." He turned back to Marth again. "Listen, Prince. Remember when I said that you would get a swift, clean end if you confessed your crimes?" Marth nodded fervently.
"Well... I lied. You will suffer the same way your victims had... In a way." Marth had no idea what this was supposed to mean, until he felt the tip of Link's blade brush the opening of his rear.
"No..."
"Yes, Prince, I'm afraid so. Justice waits for no man."
It happened so quickly, Link would have preferred to do it much slower. The attendants of the ball wished to not have been forced to see it. Link ran his blade through Marth's rear, thrusting it straight through his body, until it came out through the young Prince's chest. He felt Marth's body throb for a few seconds in the utmost agony and then become limp. With a horrid sound Link pulled out his sword: it was covered in blood and things of less savory nature. He lifted Marth's corpse by his collar and turned towards the window.
"Long... live the Prince", Link said and then threw Marth's body out the window, causing a cacophony of broken glass. Link then proceeded to exit the way he came. He was so swift that no one could quite make out where he went. A small pool of blood was left on the floor where the Prince had died. Otherwise, it was like the two men had dropped from the face of the earth.
Once the shock had subsided, it was replaced by anger from and confusion from Marth's loyalists. Someone mentioned that Vindictus was from Edoro, and once the story had been passed through it was taken to the proportions that the very district was in open revolt. Zelda tried to calm the furious Terminan soldiers and nobles but to no avail. The word was finally said from somewhere in the crowd:
"Revenge!"
The armed soldiers took up the battle cry and, in a frenzied rage, they ran out of the Castle, towards the Edoro district.
A/N: And so, Marth dies. Are you happy, because I am. I am still keeping up with my schedule, it seems so I might be able to post a new chapter this Saturday. If there's anything you want to comment on, please do so in the form of a Review!
Sincerely
Sargeras111